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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 116 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. kick — in football
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. hand — help
  9. cold — not warm
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. hand — in cards
  13. hide — animal skin
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. lean — to bend
  17. lean — thin
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. pitch — completely
  23. fork — to eat with
  24. fork — in a road

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com